SMLC Seminar:
Variant Accounts and the Nature of Early Japanese Mythology

David Lurie (Associate Professor, Columbia University)

Date: 18 Apr 2018 (Wed)
Time: 4:30 pm – 6:00pm
Venue: Room 4.36, Run Run Shaw Tower, Centennial Campus, HKU

Abstract:
Most students of Japanese culture or comparative mythology are familiar with tales of the progenitor deities Izanagi and Izanami, or of Susano-o, rebellious scion of the next divine generation. But fewer people realize that such myths exist in radically different versions with challenging contradictions. Through close readings of two key narratives—Izanami's death and afterlife, and Susano-o's murder of a cereal goddess—this lecture places the sources of ancient Japanese mythology in historical context and considers how we might make sense of their variant accounts.

Bio:
Associate Professor of Japanese History and Literature, Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, Columbia University.

All are welcome. No registration is required.

For enquiries, please contact Dr. Emily Chow, at echowq@hku.hk.